Posted Sun Sep 9, 2012, 9:51pm Subject: First time roaster! Just did my first batch.

So I thought I would try roasting at home with an old 80s Popcorn Pumper I picked up at the thrift store for $4. They came out pretty well, though I am curious how long I'm supposed to let them sit (and for how long) before using them? I waited four hours, ground and pulled a shot and the latte came out great. I'm just doing it casually at this point, but it would be nice to get some pointers from other popcorn roasters. I'm roasting Ethiopian beans for a light City roast, mainly for espresso.

Posted Tue Sep 11, 2012, 3:36pm Subject: Re: First time roaster! Just did my first batch.

I just did my first batch this evening...two small batches actually. Not back to back...about 45 minutes in between with a West Bend II Poppery Popper...First batch 8 minutes and didn't come out too dark really.

Second batch 11 minutes after a 30 second warmup of the popper. Much darker and more even coloring. Can see the oils being brought out to the surface.

Lots of Chaff still inside the beans though...how about yours? Clean beans when finished? How long did you roast them for?

Posted Tue Sep 11, 2012, 5:22pm Subject: Re: First time roaster! Just did my first batch.

i did my first roasts in a presto popcorn now plus, i had two to alternate. My roasts would develop by ear alone. I couldn't get the angle to see the beans do their thing in there, so i waited for the cracks. I'm looking at my notes ( which i recommend on taking lots, for later roasts) and i got a first crack roughly around 2 minutes in. I was using a 1/2 cup batch size, sometimes a little less (wasn't any quicker). I would start to hear the second crack round the 4 min mark, then i'd terminate. Roast degree happens very quickly, if you want a city+ or a full city, terminate after the last audible pop of first crack. Full city +, let go a few seconds into second crack. I remember losing sometimes quite a bit of beans in the process. What i did was save all the discarded beans and do a roast with just them. This batch would vary in degree from straight green beans, sum yellow or light brown, the batch would come out a little darker then the rest but beans are not to be wasted or thrown out which is what i did one too many times. Machines vary in heat and air movement, so longer roasting times may be needed, but the tell tale way to roast is be first and second crack. The beans tell you when and where they are going so pay close attention. Hope this helps for new coffee heads. But above all don't give up, it's a wonderful expirience once you get the hang of things. Happy roasting!

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